I am always delighted to hear that someone was inspired by this little blog of mine. So when my friend, Sharon, told me that she was inspired by my “manicure in a jar” craft project I was thrilled. And when she showed me photos of her “Orange Lavender Hand Scrub” I was totally impressed! She is so creative… and a girl after my own heart; budgeting all along the way.

She needed 11 hostess gifts (Yes, ELEVEN!!) for several baby showers over the summer. Their baby is due in October. YAY!
Here’s how she did it.

To make the hand scrub, she used the juice of fresh oranges and drops of lavender oil along with olive oil, sugar, and a dash of water. She got the twine and jars (set of 12) at Ace hardware for only $10!! She designed the gift tags herself and using ‘antique looking’ card stock paper she printed them at home for free!

With a little bit of ingenuity and a few hours out of her weekend, she was able to create these adorable hostess gifts for about $4 each! Considering the fact that they’d probably retail for about $10-$15 each, I’d say she deserves a big high five!

Nice work, my friend!

I’d love to feature a project that you are proud of! Email me at emily@eclairecreations.com

It’s hard to believe that Crafty Chicks Night is a year old. What started out last summer simply as a way to spend more time with my friends has turned into a monthly ‘craft club’ of sorts and something I am really proud of.

As a way to celebrate CCN’s big 1^st birthday, I thought a little field trip would be fun. So on Wednesday, the Chicks spent the evening at Sips & Strokes.  Located just north of Atlanta, Sips & Strokes is a unique art studio where you are taught by an instructor and guided through the process of painting your very own original work of art.

And as the name suggests, you are encouraged to bring drinks to sip on while creating your masterpiece. Wine helps the creative process, apparently. I couldn’t agree more!

You can plan your trip to Sips and Strokes around the day of the week or around the project since each one is actually listed on the website. For our group, I chose a still life portrait of wine bottles as the project…pretty appropriate, I’d say! 

Now, I certainly didn’t doubt that this little outing would be fun. Honestly, any time spent with the Chicks is fun…however, I was a little skeptical about my painting abilities (I’ve been known to ruin a perfectly good blank canvas) and I was curious to see just how this project would turn out. Our instructor was awesome, though! She walked us through the entire process, step by step.  She was really reassuring and encouraged us to not over-think it (which we all know I’m really good at doing). With each step, our paintings came to life and you could see the trepidation in our eyes turn into excitement.  Who knew we all had such artistic abilities within?   

ready to get started!

basic outline

added background

added table top

colors and bottle labels

fun details and finishing touches

artistic sisters...who knew?!?

check out our masterpieces!

We were all really happy with our creations! And now, we each have very similar paintings, that we created together, to proudly display in our homes. To me, that’s really special.

As previously mentioned, I am saying farewell to a few very good friends this month. As sad as it is for me to say goodbye, I am truly excited for the new chapters in their lives. As I strive to be the eternal optimist, I am remaining focused on all the positive aspects of these life changes. 

Speaking of…since Laura will be moving to Los Angeles and Amanda will be moving to sunny Florida, I now have two new vacation destinations! Hooray! 

Also, saying farewell means one thing: Going Away Parties! With summer in full swing, we’re having a few pool parties to wish these lovely ladies the best of luck in their new endeavors. And, I’m a busy bee working on some gifts for them. 

As I reflect on the amazing memories of time spent with my friends, two things were always constant: food and drink. Without a doubt, some of our best times have been on the patio of our favorite Cuban restaurant; feasting on fish tacos and sipping sangria…or crowded into our own kitchens; cooking dinner and enjoying a nice bottle of wine. 

So, I thought I would make them each a functional gift that they could use in their new homes and that would remind them of the wonderful times we enjoyed while they called Atlanta “home”. 

I went to a local flooring supply warehouse and bought some granite tiles. Then I picked up some Atlanta tourist maps, grabbed my trusted bottle of Mod Podge and went to work!

The end result: A set of decoupage coasters decorated with our favorite Atlanta neighborhoods.

Here’s how I did it.

my supplies

tear map to fit tiles - rough edges look best

cover tile with a good coat of Mod Podge

place map on tile and coat with Mod Podge

apply a coat of waterproof varnish

affix felt pads (to protect surfaces from rough tiles)

finished coasters

cheers!

As a way to be ‘green’ during the wedding festivities (while saving some ‘green’), we’re trying to limit the amount of flowers we order. We’ll have flowers, of course; for bouquets, centerpieces, etc. but I’m hoping to be as conservative as possible with the order. Since we’re having the rehearsal dinner and the reception at the same place, I thought about using the same flowers all weekend long, but that won’t work because we’re ordering the flowers early and they’ll need some time to open up so they’ll be pretty on the big day.

I was debating what I could do to dress up the rehearsal dinner a bit, without having to order more flowers, when I discovered Paper Platypus. Karen Block at Paper Platypus creates the most beautiful paper flowers and sells them in her Etsy store. You can buy assembled bouquets as well as DIY kits in a rainbow of colors and an assortment of styles. I stumbled upon her work via Everything Etsy – a really fun blog that I visit practically every day. Paper Platypus was one of the featured Etsy sellers and was offering a giveaway for a DIY Mum kit. I entered the giveaway and lo and behold, I won!

Some floral décor for the rehearsal dinner…for free?? What a deal!

The DIY kits come with step-by-step instructions, so assembly was really easy. And the flowers look great! I’ve actually had them in a vase on the coffee table and they are a really cute addition to the room. And, since they’ll never die, I won’t have the sad task of throwing them out. Genius! 

I haven’t yet decided if I want to keep them in a vase or remove the stem and have them scattered along the tables like in the photo below. What do you think?

August is going to be a hard month for me. Not because of the continued heat wave in the South. Not because I will say goodbye to summer without taking a single trip to the beach. But because in August, my sweet friend, Kathianne is moving to Dallas. In fact, she is one of three friends (two of whom are bridesmaids in my wedding) who will move from Atlanta by year’s end. But, that’s really hard for me to think about so I’m just taking each departure as they come.

Kathianne is an incredibly talented artist, an absolute ray of sunshine, and my crafty soul mate. We get together all the time to work on our individual projects and to collaborate on crafty endeavors. We also constantly send each other ideas and snippets of inspiration that we find online, in magazines, etc.

Since many state lines (and a time zone) will soon separate us, we know we will need to make an effort to continue to be each other’s muse. So, we decided upon journals, traveling notebooks if you will, that we can use to share concepts and photos of projects we’re working on as well as our ’to-be-made’ missions.

We decided to purchase rather ordinary-looking journals and decorate them together. This way they will always remind us of the times we have spent together indulging in creativity and up to our elbows in glitter, Mod Podge and glue.

a ribbon explosion

look at that focus!

these books are about to see some serious miles

Kathianne's journal

My journal (after some additional work)

ready to be filled with inspiration!

Watch out y’all, the Lone Star State is about to get a lot more crafty!

Tonight I participated in my very first sewing circle with my neighbor and friend, Kathy. She’s extremely talented and has a line of aprons that she sells in boutiques around Atlanta.

stitching with a friend

I wanted to spend some time with Kathy and I also wanted to keep the sewing momentum going. No real projects in mind, just wanted to break out the machine and work on something. So, I grabbed a bolt of fabric that Eric’s mom had given me and decided to make some party flags for the wedding and/or reception. I’m not sure if we’ll use them, but they could hang in the boathouse at the rehearsal dinner, or by the guest book area, or by the cake, anywhere, really… So, we’ll take them to the lake and see if we can find a use for them.  

In the meantime, it was fun to have a project to work on. And, I will say that having no real end result in mind surely takes the pressure off the sewing process.

I simply measured and cut 6” by 8” triangles from the fabric and roughly hemmed the edges (so they wouldn’t fray). Then I sewed them to some bias tape (that I chose to buy instead of make, thankyouverymuch…) and just like that, I had strands of party flags! 

cut triangles from reversible fabric

using a wide zigzag stitch, roughly hem edges

hemmed flags and bias tape

measuring 12" from the end, pin flags 2" apart

pin twelve flags to the bias tape leaving 12" from end

sew flags where pinned

party flags!!

They are really adorable and I don’t want to wait until October to use them…so, who wants to have a party??

One of the hidden costs in planning a wedding is gifts for attendants. The editors at WeddingChannel.com estimate that the average bride spends approximately $70 on each gift. Considering the fact that the average wedding has 5 bridesmaids/groomsmen, it can be a significant expense…and one that few brides factor into their budget. 

Many decide to give accessories (jewelry for ‘maids and ties for groomsmen) that they’ll wear at the wedding, while others choose a more personalized gift. I’ve decided to indulge in creativity and make personalized gift baskets for each of my ‘maids. While I can’t go into complete detail (because they are loyal followers of this little blog of mine – and I love them for that) I can show a few of the goodies that I plan to include in the gift baskets. You can bet they’ll utilize my newly obtained sewing skills and will reflect my unique friendship with each girl. 

Realizing how simple it was to make bath salts for my Mother’s Day craft project I thought I’d give the gift baskets a ‘spa element’ and was excited to find a recipe online for a Lemon Sugar Hand Scrub. 

I grabbed some clean, glass jars from the recycling bin, decoupaged the lids, mixed a few simple ingredients and, voila! They will each enjoy a manicure in a jar!

pretty lids

simple ingredients; lemon, sugar and olive oil

mix ingredients until well blended

the finished products!

I plan on packing these gift baskets to the brim, so stayed tuned for more inspiration and sneak peeks into my DIY bridesmaid’s baskets!

Tonight was my last sewing class. I’m sad. I really enjoyed the entire experience. I liked getting to know the other girls. I loved spending the end of the workday in an industrious environment. I really benefited from being challenged to learn something new. And I learned a little about myself, as well.

While there are many technical aspects of sewing; measuring, cutting, seam allowance, etc…it’s really nothing to be apprehensive of. At times, my propensity for perfectionism started to get the best of me and Elle, our instructor, had to guide me…” it doesn’t need to be perfect, just cut the fabric…”  and “don’t over think it, just sew…” I had to come to terms with my OCD tendencies and then simply let them go. And you know what? Everything I made in this class turned out just fine. It all turned out really well, in fact! 

Are my stitches straight as an arrow? No. Did I perfect the art of cutting in a (true) straight line? No. Did I get to a place of appreciation for my bobbin? No. Does any of that take away from my sense of accomplishment? No! 

Did tonight’s project make me feel like a real ‘sew pro’? YES! 

We spent the entire class tonight working on our ‘final exam’. We made a piped and corded pillow complete with a zipper! You might not be able to get the full idea by a simple description… so let me just say…it was work. Focused work; therapeutic work; but work. There were many steps involved and more than a few moments when I was filled with trepidation leading up to the great reveal (which was basically turning the whole thing right-side-out) to admire my handiwork.

And you know what? It turned out amazingly well. I mean, seriously…I made this tonight!

pillow front

pillow back with zipper

I’m beyond thrilled at my creations. I’m also really glad that I decided to learn something new. I’m absolutely going to take more classes at Whipstitch – they offer a variety beyond the basic introductory course. Not to mention, I’d use any excuse to go back and load up on fabric…because I don’t think my current stash is nearly big enough.

my new obsession

This class is teaching me a lot more than how to sew. Initially, I had a good bit of ‘machine envy’ as it’s pretty clear my sewing machine is one of the oldest in the group. The others are super high-tech with top loading bobbins, spring loaded needle threaders, and pre-programmed decorative stitches that rival embroidery. My little machine can make straight and/or zigzag stitches. Sigh. 

At first, I was totally guilty of coveting thy neighbor’s machine and by the end of the first class, I had convinced myself that I needed a new machine; surely I’d be better with a new machine; I’d definitely be more efficient with a new machine.   

But, isn’t that mentality just the trappings of our disposable society? We always feel the need to upgrade; our digital cameras, our cell phones, our wardrobe, ourselves.   

There’s nothing that I need to do, that I really need to do, that my sewing machine can’t handle. She’s sturdy and reliable and come to think about it, has a nice vintage flare. Now that she & I understand each other, and as I continue to learn how she works best, I’m pretty content with my old gal. 

I think I’ll pass on an upgrade for now.

Which means one thing: I can buy more fabric! 

Speaking of…I must again mention that Whipstitch has the most beautiful fabrics. When I arrive each day, I really struggle to choose my fabric for the night’s class because there are simply too many wonderful options. 

Tonight we finished our picnic carry-all and placemat and I am SO in love with it. It may seem basic, but I think it’s lovely and I’m extremely proud of myself for making it. 

my picnic carry-all and placemat!

it even folds up to fit in a picnic basket!

We also started on our reversible tote bags. While I’ve mastered the pillowcase tote bags that we made at Crafty Chicks Night in April, I’ve never started one from scratch, so I was eager to learn how to start this project from the beginning. Surprisingly, it was easier than I was expecting (maybe I’m getting the hang of this) and somehow we ended up ahead of schedule which means I took home the finished product! Check it out!

my reversible tote bag!

that's right, people...it's two bags in one.

 Tomorrow is the final class and we have quite a lofty goal to accomplish. We’re making piped and corded pillows complete with a zipper. I’m already debating which fabric to choose…

Tonight’s class taught me all about fabric…types, weights, weave, print direction, selvedge edges, grainline, crossgrain and the absolute importance of pre-washing. I learned more about fabric than I thought there was to know.

I also learned that while there is value to being ‘self-taught’ in many areas of crafts and creativity, when it comes to sewing, there’s more value in learning from a professional. 

For me, anyway. 

For example, I couldn’t figure out why I was having such difficulty threading the bobbin and getting it to cooperate with me. Well, it turns out that I was making it way more complicated than it needed to be by actually taking the whole thing apart each time I tried to thread it or needed to change the thread color. I’m pretty sure I was messing with parts of that machine that only a repair man should. 

So, while being self-taught is worthy of many accolades in many areas, when it comes to learning the intricacies of a sewing machine, I think it’s better left to a professional.

Tonight’s projects were to make continuous bias tape and to start what will become a picnic carry-all and placemat. Sounds pretty easy, right?

continuous bias tape...don't be fooled by its apparent simplicity!

the purpose of continuous bias tape...to cover rough sewn edges.

my soon-to-be a picnic carry-all and placemat!

Let me just say that my respect and admiration for those who can actually make more than the above mentioned items grew exponentially after tonight’s class. It was a very technical night of measuring, cutting, ironing and sewing. However, the not-quite-finished-product was totally worth the effort!